Method for producing complex image

Abstract

According to the method of the invention complex images are displayed on the display unit of a work station, for which purpose the latter is connected to at least one server. The work station produces values of parameters influencing the image data to be displayed. The values of the parameters are transmitted to the at least one server. On the basis of the values of the parameters the at least one server determines the image data to be displayed. The determined image data are then transmitted back to the work station. At the work station is then produced an image corresponding to the image data and is displayed on the display unit.

1 . Method for producing a complex image on a work station ( 12 ) with a display unit for displaying the image, the work station ( 12 ) being connected to at least one server ( 11 ), with the following steps: 
 values of parameters are produced in the work station ( 12 ) which influence the image data to be displayed,    the values of the parameters are transmitted to the at least one server ( 11 ),    on the basis of the values of the parameters the image data to be displayed are determined by the at least one server ( 11 ),    the image data are transmitted back to the work station ( 12 ) and an image corresponding to the image data is produced by the work station ( 12 ) and displayed on its display unit.    
     
     
         2 . Method according to  claim 1 , characterized in that the values of the parameters are determined by means of an object, particularly an applet, which is embedded in the image to be displayed by the display unit.  
     
     
         3 . Method according to  claim 1  or  2 , characterized in that the parameters determine an observer position with respect to an object to be displayed.  
     
     
         4 . Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the parameters include at least one of the quantities: viewing point, viewing direction and inclination angle to the horizontal.  
     
     
         5 . Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the image data are determined in the at least one server by rendering.  
     
     
         6 . Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one server has at least two working units ( 14 ), each of said working units ( 14 ) being suitable for generating image data and by means of a server-side portal ( 13 ) the parameters for image data determination are distributed to one of the working units ( 14 ).  
     
     
         7 . Method according to  claim 6 , characterized in that the working units ( 14 ) use a common library of calculating routines, particularly rendering routines, for determining the image data.  
     
     
         8 . Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a check is made by means of a metric as to whether a temporary memory, particularly an image data memory associated with a working unit, is storing image data which only differ insignificantly from the image data to be determined on the basis of the present values of the parameters and if the image data only differ insignificantly the corresponding, stored image data can be transmitted back to the work station.  
     
     
         9 . Method according to  claim 8 , characterized in that by means of the metric only an insignificant difference is detected if the divergence between the values of the parameters of the image to be displayed and the values of the parameters of the stored image is below an error barrier.  
     
     
         10 . Method according to  claim 9 , characterized in that the error barrier is determined as a function of the resolution of the display unit of the work station, which has transmitted the parameters for the image to be generated.